Sixth-graders from the International School of Louisiana in New Orleans were asked to depict what philanthropy and diversity mean to them. The third-, second- and first-place winners are (from left to right) Khaija Zuniga, William Cooper and Kayla Forstall. Behind them are (from left to right) James K. Phelps, CFRE, development director, ACLU of Oregon, Portland, Ore., and chair of the AFP Diversity Committee; Alphonce J. Brown Jr., ACFRE, director of development, National Minority AIDS Council, Washington, D.C., and a past chair of AFP; and Brenda Asare and Karen Rotko-Wynn, CFRE, both senior vice presidents with The Alford Group, which sponsors the Diversity Art Showcase.

Christopher Gardner recounted his amazing story—published in 2006 as an autobiography, The Pursuit of Happyness—at the opening general session on Sunday afternoon. Gardner’s childhood was marked by poverty, domestic violence, alcoholism, sexual abuse and family illiteracy. He never knew his father and lived with his mother—something that had a profound effect on his life: “I made up my mind as a young kid that when I had children, they were going to know who their father is and that he isn’t going anywhere. “It was at a point in time, where honestly, I didn’t know whether I was going to quit, crack or cry. Some way, my son picks up on this, and he stands up in the bathtub and says, ‘Papa, you know what? You’re a good papa.’ That was all I needed to go on.”

Gardner’s mother told him that, in spite of where he came from, he could and achieve any goal he set for himself. He became a successful stockbroker and eventually founded his own company. Today, he is involved with homelessness initiatives, assisting families to stay intact and assisting homeless men and women who are employed but still cannot get by. However, something else gives him the most satisfaction. “When I look back at the journey from homelessness to prosperity, I hold one thing dearer than all else: my commitment to my son,” Gardner said. “Doing a movie with the top movie star portraying me, doing a book—all that stuff is great, but the most important thing that I will have ever done in my life was break the cycle of men who were not there for their children.”

Gardner was happy to meet AFP members and sign his book, The Pursuit of Happyness, after the general session.